A High-Value Deal Under Supreme Court Lens
Sahara India has moved the Supreme Court seeking permission to sell 88 properties — including the iconic Aamby Valley City near Lonavala (≈8,810 acres) — to Adani Properties Pvt. Ltd..
The proposal, filed on September 6, 2025, outlines a bulk asset transfer aimed at settling investor refunds under the SEBI–Sahara Refund Account. The Court is expected to hear the plea on October 14, 2025.
Sahara argues that piecemeal asset sales have failed and that a single-buyer transaction can expedite repayments to lakhs of depositors still awaiting their dues since the 2012 Supreme Court orders.
Legal Complexities Shadowing the Sale
While the move could unlock thousands of crores, the deal is tangled in multiple legal restrictions.
- The Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached 707 acres in and around Aamby Valley (worth ₹1,460 crore) in April 2025, citing alleged benami transactions under the PMLA Act.
- These attachments remain in force, and unless the Supreme Court issues a blanket clearance under Article 142, the land transfer cannot be executed.
Additionally, some of the assets included in the proposed sale, such as Sahara Shaher in Lucknow, are currently sealed by local authorities — adding yet another layer of dispute.
⚖️ What “Article 142” means in this context
Article 142 of the Indian Constitution gives the Supreme Court the power to pass any order necessary to do complete justice in a case.
It’s an extraordinary power — it lets the Court override ordinary laws or administrative blocks if required to settle the matter fully and fairly.
🔍 How it applies to the Sahara–Adani sale
Right now, Aamby Valley and other Sahara assets are under multiple legal locks —
- Enforcement Directorate attachments (under money-laundering laws),
- Municipal seals (like Lucknow’s LMC action),
- Earlier Supreme Court restrictions tied to investor refunds.
If the Supreme Court wants the Adani sale to go through despite those blocks, it can use Article 142 to:
- Suspend or lift those attachments temporarily,
- Authorize the sale and transfer of title, and
- Direct that the sale proceeds go straight into SEBI’s refund account.
- The deal cannot legally proceed unless the Court uses its special constitutional power to override all existing bans, seals, and attachments so the property can be sold cleanly.
Lucknow Municipal Corporation Seals Sahara Shaher
In late September 2025, the Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) sealed nearly 170 acres of Sahara-owned land in Gomtinagar, including parts of the Sahara Shaher campus.
According to LMC officials, the licence deed for ~130 acres (residential and commercial) was cancelled, and the lease for ~40 acres of green-belt land was revoked for alleged violations of lease and usage terms.
The LMC also issued a three-day eviction notice to Sahara, later granting a short reprieve to vacate voluntarily. It has announced plans to file a caveat in the Supreme Court, asserting its right to be heard before any judicial order allows the sale of these disputed assets.
The Aamby Valley Factor
Aamby Valley, the crown jewel of the Sahara portfolio, spans over 8,800 acres and was once envisioned as India’s first fully planned luxury township.
The Supreme Court had earlier ordered its auction in 2017–2018, but the attempt failed due to lack of bidders and unclear land titles.
Now, with Adani’s interest, the project is back in focus — but regulatory clearance, especially concerning ED attachments and court-monitored refund obligations, will determine if this revival is even possible.
Refunds, Approvals, and the Road Ahead
Sahara claims to have deposited ₹16,000 crore with SEBI against the ₹24,030 crore directed by the Court.
In September 2025, the Supreme Court approved ₹5,000 crore disbursal to genuine investors and extended the repayment timeline till 2026.
The upcoming October 14 hearing will decide whether the Adani deal can move forward and whether the Court will lift or modify restrictions tied to the attached assets.
Why It Matters to the Real Estate Sector
If cleared, this could become one of the largest judicially supervised real-estate transfers in Indian history, merging luxury township land, urban assets, and hospitality properties into a single sale.
However, the success of the deal depends entirely on judicial approval, regulatory clean-up, and municipal consent — particularly from ED, LMC, and SEBI.
For buyers, investors, or legal observers, the Aamby Valley case is a stark reminder:
Real estate due diligence must go beyond documents — it must include active court and municipal record verification.